Lost in Hueco Mundo
by MyimmortalHadenXCharm
Summary: The senkaimon is closed and who is left behind in the desert of eternal night? ((Series of Ikkaku-Yumichika Oneshots))
1. Chapter 1

Yumichika stood, rigid and cold, as he and his patrol company walked through the senkaimon to Hueco Mundo.

No tears fell from his violet eyes. His face was blank. Nothing, he felt nothing.

Ikkaku had been missing and presumed dead for two months. There was nothing to feel, nothing to live for.

The hours went by in the endless night of Hueco Mundo, white buildings and sand hills shining in the moonlight. Other than the occasional hollow attack, there was nothing but the whipping of the wind.

After five hours, they were preparing to leave, and they noticed a large group of hollows in the distance.

"Ayesegawa-Goseki, what are our orders?"

Yumichika's eyes narrowed, and he held a hand up to his eyes to shield them from the moonlight, in an attempt to see farther.

Suddenly he froze up, and his eyes snapped open wide. He took off running.

"Hey, Hey, where ya' goin'?!"

Yumichika didn't look back, he didn't stop running.

"Wait, Stop, The Senkaimon's opening!"

Yumichika leapt in the air, howling as he impaled a hollow deeply in the back, slashing two others. He dropped his sword and ran the last few yards and skidded in the sand as he scrambled over the cold unmoving body.

"I found you, I've found you! You're alive… You're still alive, Thank God, You're still alive," Tears ran from Yumichika's violet eyes, but no sobs shook his shoulders. His arms shook uncontrollably.

He waited and waited for his response, he could feel the arms on his back, on the back of his neck, he could see the filmy, mucus-streaked eyes drifting over his face, but he didn't hear the response that he wanted, that he always recieved.

'Of course I am,'

"Ikkaku, Oh, Ikkaku, Look at you." He took Ikkaku's face in his hands, and he began to weep bitterly. He ran his fingers through the thick black hair on Ikkaku's head, holding his poor broken body. Ikkaku's breath rasped, and he began to cough weakly, blood bubbling on his lips.

"I thought you weren't comin' back fer me.." Ikkaku's bloody lips quirked in a little smile, and his arms flopped back down onto the sand. Ikkaku's head rolled to the side.

Yumichika's breath froze, and he suddenly began sobbing, eyes wide and unfeeling, as he shook Ikkaku and pounded on his chest, "Get up, Get up, _Get up, Get up! No!"_

Blood dripped down Ikkaku's chin and into the sand.

The story of Zaraki's go-seki carrying the long-missing san-seki through the senkaimon and all the way to the healing barracks, was a source of gossip for years.


	2. Chapter 2

They had finally found him. By accident really. The search had ended weeks ago, and they had found him by chance while patrolling, laying there with a few miles worth of tracks in the sand behind him, from where he had dragged his body.

Yumichika had shrieked and took off running when they recognized the spirit pressure, and whose body it was, Kenpachi in hot pursuit.

Yumichika was wailing, and his hands were scrambling over his unmoving body. He held Ikkaku's cheeks and whimpered 'I found you' over and over.

Zaraki came upon them, and he was struck by Ikkaku's cold, unmoving eyes, and the black matted hair on his head. His legs were twisted and mangled and bloody and all his ribs were showing. He had been out here for months, dragging himself with two broken legs and slowly starving to death.

It seemed that they were just barely too late. Zaraki had known that Ikkaku was still alive when the senkaimon was closed. He had been the one restraining the screaming and kicking Yumichika as the gate closed, leaving a few stragglers behind to be overtaken by hollows. Of course they had gone back, but there had been nothing left to find.

Still, knowing how deadened Yumichika had been without Ikkaku there, knowing how attached the two were, knowing how long they had been together and how close they were, Zaraki was still taken aback by how frantic his go-seki was, and gruffly asked, "Is he alive?" He cleared his throat.

"I don't know." Yumichika's voice shook. He pressed his ear to Ikkaku's chest, listening for a heartbeat. His eyes were wide, tears leaking down his face. Those eyes haunted Zaraki's dreams for months.


	3. Chapter 3

"Shut up, Yumichika, I'm gonna' get us outta this, alright?!"

Yumichika snarled, turning away, "Get out of here, or you'll die." He turned his face over his shoulder, "Go!"

"No!" Ikkaku grabbed Yumichika's shoulders and shook him, "I'm not fuckin' leavin' you here to keep getting raped by those sick assholes! I told'ja I'd never let that happen to ya' again!" His voice echoed around the cave. "God…." He bowed his head, thick hair covering his eyes, "I said I'd protect ya'…." He said bitterly.

Yumichika blinked, eyes dead.

"I can hardly look atcha'." His mouth screwed up and his throat tightened from the weight of tears. "Look at you," He looked at Yumichika, eyes blinking rapidly, fist over his own mouth, in grief. He breathed deeply over and over and suddenly snapped, screaming in anger.

"_Look at you_!" He raged, punching the wall, over and over.

"Look at me," Yumichika said, voice bland. He was covered in hickeys and burn marks from head to toe, shackled to a rock, hair chopped up unevenly. There were red marks on his face, large knots on his head and on his back that had obviously been pounded in by fists, and large amounts of blood dried on his thighs and the sand beneath him. Every one of his ribs were showing, and Ikkaku guessed that Yumichika had lost about twenty pounds.

"I finally found ya'…. I never wanted to find you like this," He allowed himself one moment of screwing up his face in tears, before drilling his fists into his eyes, knuckling away the moisture. "I could tell you were alive… But this isn't livin'."

"I'm only allowed to live because I'm beautiful. It's kinda' funny. It's the same way we met."

"No! Shut the hell up!" Ikkaku shouted, grabbing Yumichika by the hair and shaking him, "Shut the _hell _up! Don't say shit like that, are you fuckin' kiddin' me!?" Yumichika gripped Ikkaku's wrist, to try to free his scalp, but Ikkaku did not let go. "That's not true!"

Yumichika sneered at him, "You killed everyone else in that brothel but me. Don't try to lie. You thought I was beautiful, so you let me live."

"You stop sayin' that!" Ikkaku growled, shaking him again, "Stop sayin' that, I said! I'm not some sicko, They were rapin' you, I was savin' yer' life!" Yumichika ignored him.

"It's the same reason they left me alive, but slaughtered the rest of my patrol. They don't _take_ prisoners, but they took me." Yumichika smirked.

Ikkaku released him, hand sliding down over Yumichika's cheek and neck. Tears dripped down his cheeks as he fingered the large purple bruises left by sucking mouths and powerful fists.

He slowly drew Yumichika into his arms and whispered rawly, "I love you…" He choked, "I love you, I've been lookin' for ya' all this time… I'm not leavin' you here,"

"They'll kill you," Yumichika said coldly, pushing out of his arms. "You could've gotten out of here long ago, if you had just left me as soon as we got separated. What's the point of surviving rogue in Hueco Mundo for four months, if you're killed trying to save me?" He shook his head, "Leave, Ikkaku."

"Look.." He wiped his eyes, "They closed the gate, they're not lookin' for us any more, that's for sure. There's no one out here but us. We can't afford to be split up. Now yer comin' with me, no questions asked,"

"No- I'm not!"

He grabbed Yumichika's arm with brute force, hauled him away from the rock and shoved him down.

"Sit still, and stop fightin' me now." Yumichika stayed where he had been thrown. Ikkaku looked at him. "Babe…. Baby…" Ikkaku whimpered, "I love you, I'm not leavin' you here. Please…" He shook his head, holding out his hands, "Oh…. Yumichika.." He dropped on the ground and hovered his hands over Yumichika, "Baby, don't make me… Oh God… I'm not tryin' ta' hurt ya."

His hands shook, but he decided not to touch Yumichika, and recoiled. He blinked a few times, and shoved his hair back from his face, and began hacking at the chains on Yumichika's legs with his zanpakutou.

After about ten minutes, Ikkaku pried the cuffs off of Yumichika's emaciated blood-encrusted legs, and lifted him up by the arm.

He shook him a little, as Yumichika hung there limply, "Get up- Yumichika, Get up now," He said gruffly, wiping tears off his cheek. He was weeping bitterly. "Get up, Yer' free-"

Yumichika stood on thin, wobbly legs, knees buckling and almost collapsing. "Yumichika, where's yer' sword?"

"Over there, somewhere," Yumichika gestured vaguely to the back of the cavern.

"Okay, Come on, we're stayin' together. You're not even pissin' without me, I swear to God, we're not survivin' otherwise, you understand?" Yumichika nodded, without speaking. Ikkaku lifted his chin, "Listen, babe, I'm not tryin' to be rough with ya, I'm not tryin' to be mean, I'm just so fuckin' angry, seein' you like this. I wanna save ya'…. I'm gonna take care a' ya, I'm gonna protect ya', alright?" He hugged Yumichika tightly, "God, I missed you-"

Yumichika nodded, wrapping his thin arms around Ikkaku's neck, as he was lifted up. "I love you, Ikkaku…. I…. I… All my hope…. Was gone… I'm sorry I…"

"Sssh, shh, baby, save your energy," They retrieved his sword and made their way back to the front of the cavern.

"They're gonna come back soon," Yumichika said quietly, "The Arrancar. The Vasto Lordes." He whispered, fingers curling.

"Yumi, Yumi- Stop, Listen to me, I'm gonna keep you safe, Stop the shakin', baby. I can't bear it when you shake." Ikkaku didn't wipe the tears anymore and just let them drip down his face and leave dirty trails down his neck.

Yumichika pushed his face into Ikkaku's neck. "Okay here, stand up,-" He helped Yumichika back to his feet, "Here's the plan: We've gotta get back to where we were fightin' when they closed the gate. That's the place where we have the best chance of finding someone on a patrol, and being able to get back home, okay? We just have to hang around there long enough for someone to find us, and then we'll go home."

Yumichika nodded.

"I know ya don't have any clothes left baby, but there's no helpin it, I only got these left," He gestured to his tattered hakama. "Ya want me to carry ya' on my back? If yer cold? Listen, I won't let anyone look atcha' when we get rescued, so don't worry, sweetheart. I'll carry ya'." Ikkaku kept talking and talking to fill the silence, to convince himself that he had everything under control and that he knew what he was doing.

"I'm gonna try to walk for awhile, Ikkaku," Yumichika said, "I haven't been able to stretch my legs,"

"Alright, sweetheart, let's start goin'."

"Okay," They walked in silence for a few hours, and tears kept coming from Ikkaku's eyes.

"How soon are they gonna be back?"

"Nightfall."

"It's always fuckin' night here."

Yumichika smiled a little bit.

"Ya' think they're gonna come lookin' for ya'?"

"Almost certain. They'll think I cut my own chains and got free myself."

"We'll have to go fast then."

"Thank you… Thank you for looking for me,- I know you could've gone a long time ago- I-"

"Hey, don't cry," Ikkaku sniffed, own face glistening with a hundred tears, "You've been so brave. Just be brave for a little longer, and we can cry when we get home. We're not dead yet."


End file.
